When signatures printed by a printing press and folded by a plurality of folders are piled at one location and delivered, it is common practice to transport a signature folded by one of the folders and a signature folded by the other folder toward a fan wheel provided in the one folder by one of transport belts and the other transport belt running as a pair, alternately feed the signature folded by the one folder and the signature folded by the other folder to the fan wheel, and discharge the signatures in alignment to a delivery device disposed below the fan wheel.
In such a transport apparatus, a paper jam or the like may occur in the surroundings of the fan wheel. As an example of an apparatus which can facilitate the operation of removing the jammed signature from such a jamming state, there can be named a transport apparatus as described in Patent Literature 1.
In the Patent Literature 1, a roller for supporting one of transport belts, a chopper device, and a fan wheel are supported by one of frames in one of the folders. The one frame is provided with one of adjusting mechanisms, and the one adjusting mechanism adjusts the position in the right-and-left direction of the one frame.
In the other folder, the other transport belt is passed over a first roller, a second roller, a third roller, and a fourth roller. The first roller is disposed nearest the fan wheel in the one folder. The second roller is adjacent to the first roller downstream in the travel direction of the transport belt, and is disposed at a retreat position spaced from the neighborhood of the fan wheel. The third roller is adjacent to the first roller upstream in the travel direction of the transport belt, and is located between the first roller and the second roller. The fourth roller is adjacent to the second roller downstream in the travel direction of the transport belt, and is located between the second roller and the third roller. The first roller and the second roller are supported by a moving frame, while the third roller and the fourth roller are supported by the other frame.
In such a transport apparatus, during maintenance, for example, one for a paper jam of the signature transported by the one transport belt, there is a space downstream, in the rotating direction of the fan wheel, of a path for the entry of the signature to the fan wheel. The jammed signature can be removed in this space. That is, the work of removing the jammed signature can be performed, without moving the one transport belt with respect to the fan wheel.
In the case of maintenance, for example, one for a paper jam of the signature transported by the other transport belt, on the other hand, the one transport belt is passed over a site downstream, in the rotating direction of the fan wheel, of the path for the entry of the signature to the fan wheel. This jammed signature cannot be removed at the downstream site. This requires that the other transport belt be moved with respect to the fan wheel. Thus, the moving frame has to be rendered movable with respect to the one frame. For this reason, the moving frame is provided with the other adjusting mechanism. The other adjusting mechanism adjusts the position in the right-and-left direction of the moving frame, concretely, the position between the position close to the fan wheel in the one folder and the retreat position spaced from this position close to the fan wheel.
Since the above-described configuration has to be adopted, two operations, i.e., an operation for the one adjusting mechanism and an operation for the other adjusting mechanism, are performed when adjusting the position of folding of the signature by the chopper device. Concretely, when the one frame for supporting the chopper device is moved by the one adjusting mechanism, the one transport belt and the fan wheel supported by the one frame are moved in accordance with this movement, but the other transport belt is not moved. Thus, the moving frame is moved by the other adjusting mechanism to adjust the other transport belt to an appropriate position with respect to the path of entry of the signature to the fan wheel.